Phuket News
Phuket news, politics, business, tourism, and nightlife—stay updated with breaking stories, events, and expat updates from Thailand’s top island destination. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Phuket news source.
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Phuket alcohol ban ahead of local elections
PHUKET: A ban on the sale of alcohol goes into effect in Srisoonthorn Municipality at 6pm tonight ahead of local elections tomorrow.Phuket Election Commission Director Kittipong Thiengkunakrit told the Phuket Gazette, “The alcohol ban will be in effect from 6pm Friday night through to midnight Saturday night due to the Srisoonthorn municipal elections on Saturday, February 18.”Mr Kittipong explained that…
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Qantas, Jetstar offer way home for stranded Air Australia tourists
PHUKET: National Australian airline Qantas and low-cost carrier Jetstar have announced special fares for tourists left stranded by the financial collapse Air Australia yesterday. Air Australia management declared going into voluntary administration late last night Phuket time, which resulted in the immediate grounding of their entire fleet. Qantas this morning announced the airline was drawing up a plan to assist…
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Phuket struggles to airlift stranded Air Australia tourists
PHUKET: Scores of Australian tourists have been left stranded at Phuket International Airport after low-budget carrier Air Australia grounded all flights yesterday due to insolvency. The state-run Australian Broadcasting Commission news quoted a source as saying that Air Australia was even unable to buy fuel at Phuket Airport last night for a flight ready to take tourists home. The directors…
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Phuket coral bounces back from bleaching blight
PHUKET: Considerable improvement in the condition of bleached coral reefs around Phuket and along the Andaman Coast has been noted by government researchers, it was announced at a meeting early this week. Boonchob Sudthamanaswong, Director-General of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources Andaman Coast Group (DMCR-Andaman), chaired a seminar at the Phuket Merlin Hotel on Monday to discuss government…
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Phuket officials set agenda for Cabinet visit
PHUKET: Local government officials and private sector groups will tomorrow finalize which projects will be presented to the Cabinet during the top-level ministerial visit to Phuket on March 19-20. The news comes following a brainstorming session in on Tuesday. “We discussed the monorail project, Patong tunnel project, the Convention and Exhibition Center and the airport expansion,” said Phuket Governor Tri…
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Phuket’s Paiboon resigns in shock move
PHUKET: Paiboon Upatising has resigned his position as president of the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organization (OrBorJor). More details about the shock resignation will be revealed at a press conference this afternoon, the Phuket Gazette has been told. Mr Paiboon was elected to office in April 2008, and was cleared of vote-buying allegations by the Appeals Court in Bangkok on September…
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Phuket Video Report: Alleged contract killer surrenders to Phuket police, claims innocence
PHUKET: Phuket businessman Atsadakorn “Pod” Seedokbuab, wanted by police for being the mastermind behind the assassination of Phuket newsman Wisut “Ae Inside” Tangwitthayaporn early last month, surrendered to police this morning. “I had nothing to do with it. I knew Ae very well. Even when he joined the red shirt protests in Bangkok, he called and asked me for money…
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Phuket on high alert in wake of Bangkok terror bombs
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha has ordered all police units on the island to be on high alert following the arrests of three Iranians for the bomb blasts in Bangkok on Tuesday. Phuket Provincial Police Commander Chonasit Wattanavrangkul has also ordered all police to boost patrols in Phuket’s popular tourist areas. The move follows the police learning that at least…
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Phuket select XI to play the MCC
PHUKET: The famous Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) based at the historic Lords ground in England play their first Thailand tour game tomorrow in a momentous event for the ACG and Phuket cricket. Starting at 2pm, a selection of Phuket’s cricket fraternity will don their whites and play a match to be remembered for the rest of their lives. Non-cricketers may…
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130 couples wed at Phuket Muang District Office on Valentine’s Day
PHUKET: Hearts were aflutter at Muang Phuket District Office yesterday, as 130 couples appeared to register marriages on Valentine’s Day 2012. Muang District Chief Supachai Pochanukul told the Phuket Gazette, “We prepared a special registration desk for the couples and gave them all Valentine’s Day gifts. We issued certificates to 130 couples; it was a very lovely day.”Among the newlyweds…
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Phuket mass wedding goes off – with a hitch
PHUKET: Organizer have confirmed the mass wedding at Phromthep Cape is going ahead today, even though some government agencies wanted it canceled. Phuket Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkaosutthirak received a letter of complaint claiming that the private sector shouldn’t be allowed to use public land for commercial purposes. Part of the event includes a flower exhibit that would remain on the…
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Phuket Live Wire: Yet another PayPal scam
PHUKET: A reader wrote to me, asking if she’s been scammed. Ends up, she’s been taken for a ride, and the scam artist threatened to sue. Here’s how it happened, in her words, with a few minor edits: “Woody, I ran a series of ads in the Phuket Gazette, advertising an item I have for sale. I got an email…
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Trousers to go on at Phuket Village Health Volunteers Fair
PHUKET: For people looking for a cheap night out on Valentine’s Day, the alternative band Kangkeng (Trousers) will take the stage in a free concert at Saphan Hin tonight as part of activities in the Phuket Village Health Volunteers Association Fair. The little-publicized fair, organized by the Phuket Provincial Health Office and Phuket City Municipality, got underway last Tuesday and…
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Phuket Sports: A gem of a fun regatta
PHUKET: By two first-place and two second-place finishes gave Russian Arbuzov Andrev’s Ruby Tuesday victory in Racing class of the 15th Bay Regatta.Day four of the regatta greeted crews with clear skies and good wind as they left their anchorage off the Sheraton Krabi Beach Resort and headed to Ao Chalong for the regatta’s final party and awards ceremony at…
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New shine for old Phuket shrine
PHUKET: Work is currently underway on a new cultural museum and shrine that will showcase the way of life and traditions of Phuket’s ethnic Hainanese community, which date back to Phuket’s tin mining days. Former Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai was in Phuket last week to preside over a pillar-laying ceremony at Thni Kong Thua Shrine in Wichit. Built over a…
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Phuket News: Sinkholes threaten Krabi rubber plantation
PHUKET: Sinkholes have hit a rubber plantation in Muang District Krabi, east of Phuket. Officials there are urging the landowner to fill them as soon as possible before they enlarge. The sinkholes were first reported to the Mineral Resources Department Region 4 Office in Surat Thani on February 7. On the afternoon of February 10, office director Tawatchai Thepsuwan and…
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Fish truck driver kills five, gets bail
PHUKET: The driver of a truck whose alleged reckless driving killed four young Swedish tourists and their Thai driver in Phang Nga last week has been released on bail, the Phuket Gazette has learned.An officer at Phang Nga Provincial Court told the Gazette last Wednesday that the driver, 27-year-old Muhummadyukee Jehyusoh, requested bail release on February 3.Released three days later…
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Phuket Sports: Synergy are BSS soccer champions
PHUKET: Brazilian Soccer School’s second international football tournament took place recently at Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club (TSLC) with hundreds of young enthusiasts there to show their passion and flair for the beautiful game. Team Synergy, a team that is co-sponsored by TSLC, won the U14 title and did so without losing a single match. Nine local boys from Phuket…
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Phuket Sports: Asian kiteboarding gets new media deal
PHUKET: Kiteboard Tour Asia (KTA) and television sailing channel Marine Scene Asia announced recently the signing of a media partnership agreement for the coming season. Marine Scene Asia is a specialist sailing channel that produces programming that covers all aspects of the Asian yachting and boating scene. In particular, it focuses on covering competitive sailing regattas which is an important…
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Phuket druggists to restrict sale of ‘Meth Blue’
PHUKET: Phuket pharmacists will restrict the sale of products containing ‘methylene blue’ to minors, following reports of youths taking the compound to avoid testing positive for methamphetamine use during drug tests. The announcement came during a special meeting on Saturday led by Kiattisak Parnrungsri, secretary of the Phuket Pharmacists Club; Duangjai Pasarphan, pharmacist with the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office…
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Phuket Sports: Argies barge into first; Thanyapura top the AFL
PHUKET: After a week’s break, the Fair Play League 2012 resumed back at the British International School (BIS), Phuket recently. Judging by their efforts throughout the day, players had enjoyed the rest and were intent on ridding themselves of excess energy.The U14 division matches were first to the field with one game on each of BIS’s manicured pitches. Thailand and…
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Phuket Sports: Oh Lord, the MCC are coming!
PHUKET: The rise of Phuket in world cricket continues on February 16 with the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), from Lords, the home of cricket, starting their Thailand tour with a T20 match at the ACG. Founded in 1787, MCC is the world’s most famous cricket club and its role in the game remains as relevant as ever. The organization is…
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Phuket “Meth blue’ users at risk
PHUKET: Health officials in Phuket have issued a warning to students not to take the chemical “Methylene blue” in an attempt to hide methamphetamine use from authorities in drug testing. Muang district chief Supachai Pochanakul recently described the trend of growing drug abuse by schoolchildren in Muang district as “very worrying”. The statement followed a recent round-up of 19 truant…
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Tough love: Valentine’s crackdown underway on Phuket youth
PHUKET: The Phuket authorities are cracking down hard on the island’s teenagers in advance of Valentine’s Day, with 16 young people recently detained and tested for drug use. The crackdown comes amid the traditional moral panic over the behavior of Thai youth that accompanies the romantic holiday in the country each year. Of the 16 boys and girls who were…
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Phuket’s baby elephants under investigation
PHUKET: Three elephant camps in Phuket are being investigated after concerns were raised about the origins of the baby elephants in their possession. Officers of Central Investigation Bureau of the Royal Thai Police in Bangkok investigated Phuthai Souvenir Market in Chalong, ATV Elephant Camp near the Big Buddha image in Karon and Sheraton Camp in Cheng Talay to determine if…
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Phuket resort worker, 20, dies in 4-vehicle hit-and-run
PHUKET: One person died and another was seriously injured in a four-vehicle hit-and-run accident on Patak Road in Karon before dawn today. Just after midnight, Chalong Police received a report that there was an accident on Patak Road involving one truck, one van full of Chinese tourists and two motorbikes. Chalong Police Captain Nitikorn Rawang and Phuket Ruamjai Kupai Foundation…
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Dr Smith warns of tsunami risk in Phuket, Andaman region
PHUKET: The man whose warnings of a possible tsunami disaster along Thailand’s Andaman coast went unheeded years before the 2004 calamity struck was in Phuket recently, urging a national assembly of school administrators to be prepared for more possible disasters in 2012. Dr Smith Dharmasaroja, former Director of the National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC), was guest speaker for a gathering…
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Phuket Civil Defense Volunteer dead at the wheel
PHUKET: A Phuket City Civil Defense Volunteer died at the wheel of his car yesterday, possibly even before he crashed the car into a metalworks shop in Chalong at 3am. Police at the scene suspect the driver, Apinun “Nun” Chaibandit, 48, suffered a heart attack just before the crash. The shop workers escaped harm by jumping out of the way…
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Weekend weather forecast for Phuket
PHUKET: The weekend weather forecast for Phuket calls for good beach weather, with partly-cloudy skies, calm seas and a only a small chance of showers. According to Thai Meteorological Department, there is a chance of widely scattered thundershowers over 10% of the island for today, rising to 20% coverage tomorrow and 30% on Sunday. Seas should be calm, with easterly…
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Phuket officials braced for Valentine wedding blitz
PHUKET: Love is in the air at the Muang District Office, where workers expect to issue marriage certificates to about 150 Phuket couples on Valentine’s Day. Phuket Muang District Chief Supachai Pochanukul told the Phuket Gazette, “We first started paying special attention to how many certificates we issued on Valentine’s Day in 2010, when I started working here.” “We registered…
Phuket is a province in the south of Thailand. Phuket's beaches face the Andaman Sea allowing the west coast beaches fantastic sunsets right throughout the year. If you're looking for news in Phuket, go to thethaiger.com/phuket Or follow our instant news in our Facebook pages.
The good news is that Phuket is famous for its foodie scene with an enormously diverse range of local and international foods - Phuket and southern favorites, street food along with international choices catering for the 12 million visitors to the island each year. Thaiger follows Phuket news and information 24 hours a day with regular updates.
Phuket is only 'just' an island with a 300 metre bridge linking it to Thailand's mainland. We're always reporting in the news that the channel beneath is frequently dredged to maintain Phuket's status as an island. On the other side of Sarasin Bridge is the Province of Phang Nga.
Getting to Phuket is easy as the island has land, air and sea connections. Phuket is also used as a take-off point for local island trips as Thailand's largest island is surrounded by over 30 pristine islands. Koh Phi Phi and the famous Maya Bay are always in the news and would be the best known of the island's just off Phuket's shores.
Phuket is an island and a province. It's the largest island in Thailand – 48 km north to south, 21 km east to west.
It's about 20% smaller, in area, than Singapore but much less densely populated. Whilst the island nation of Singapore boasts a population of nearly 6 million, Phuket has a permanent population of around 400-450,000 (but varies a lot with the influx of tourists and a workforce that is always changing). Most of Phuket remains jungle and tropical rainforest despite an acceleration of development over the past 20 years.
Unlike some of Thailand's other popular islands (that are in the Gulf of Thailand), the news is that Phuket is located in the Andaman Sea.
Phuket is 878 km north of the equator.
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